Wildlife

Dell Estate - whether you are planning a family gathering, a special occasion, a fishing or shooting party, or just a quiet time away in the Highlands - Dell is the perfect place for your Scottish holiday

Dell Estate
Wildlife

The range of bird life is very wide. Slavonian Grebe and Divers are specialties, while Osprey, Golden Eagle, Peregrine, Merlin, Red and Black Grouse, Ptarmigan, Ring Ouzel, Crested Tit, Crossbill, Siskin, Redpoll and many others are regulars. There is a Black Grouse Lek on the way to our high ground, with up to 20 displaying males. You will also hear our resident owls hooting round the lodge if you come in spring, and you might glimpse a ghostly wraith-like Barn Owl hunting for voles down below the farm. Recent arrivals in the area are Red Kites and visiting Sea Eagles.

If you are quiet and lucky, you will see one of the many otters that live in this area, especially at dawn or dusk. Red Squirrels visit the garden regularly, especially if you keep the nut feeder stocked. Red, Roe and Sika deer are all common on the estate, and you would be very unlucky not to see all of them during your stay. There are Pine Martens in our forestry plantation - Whitebridge Woods.

More Wildlife

One very unusual sight is that of the feral goats on Ness lochside. It is uncommon to see them, but they are quite spectacular when you do, with their long, shaggy coats and impressive horns.

The flora is so unusual that Dell is listed as both a Site of Special Scientific Interest and an EU Natura 2000 site.

The birch woodlands that flank the southern shores of Loch Ness are particularly beautiful. Apart from birch, there is Alder, Juniper, Holly, Aspen, Ash and Oak, while the ground flora includes all the heathers, Blaeberry, Sundew, Asphodel, Bladderwort, Cotton Grass, Hard Fern, Foxglove, Bracken and other characteristic flora. The primroses are a particular delight in the late spring, and look out for the Cowslips that we have sown around the policies.

Photographers & Artists

Photographers and artists will find numerous subjects, with ever-changing light. From the beautifully symmetrical eighteenth century White Bridge in the village, to the secret hill lochs and tumbling waterfalls around Dell House and farm; from the wide expanse of the purple Monadhliath Mountains to the infinite greens of the Ness Woods. If you are lucky enough to be at Dell when there is a spate of the Fechlin, make a point of visiting the Falls of Foyers for a noisy, spray-soaked vista.

Dell Estate Supports

CONTACT

Dell Estate, Whitebridge, Inverness-shire IV2 6UN